Review: Bridget Jones's Baby

PLOT: Bridget Jones is back and this time she has brand new troubles. After having a couple of sexual encounters with two very different men, she decides she’d rather not focus on romance. That changes drastically when she realizes that she is finally going to be a mom for the very first time. Unfortunately for her she isn’t sure who the father is.

REVIEW: Movie fans fell in love with Renée Zellweger with her wonderfully vibrant performance in JERRY MAGUIRE - some of us went back even further thanks to movies like LOVE AND A .45. And in 2001, the actress delighted fans with her star making BRIDGET JONES’S DIARY. After a less than stellar sequel with BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON in 2004, it appeared that the days of playing a career girl looking for love would be long gone. Of course nostalgia and the need to make sequels to a franchise that seemed dead has become very popular - even if the films themselves are not. So the question is, why the hell did BRIDGET JONES’S BABY work as well as it did? Let me put it this way, I was easily reminded of what made Ms. Zellweger so damn endearing only a few minutes into the latest feature.

Bridget Jones (Zellweger) is turning forty-three and it’s not an easy transition. She is single and feeling a bit low. When her gal pal Miranda (Sarah Solemani) decides the two should live it up at an outdoor rock festival, Bridget meets a handsome stranger named Jack (Patrick Dempsey). The two have a wild night of sex and fun, but she quickly flees the next morning. Things get even more complicated when Mark (Colin Firth), the one that seemingly got away, comes back into her life. Admitting that he is getting a divorce from his current wife, the two rekindle their romance, and once again she leaves before he can say goodbye after getting intimate. Having physical relations with the two different men, Bridget finds she is pregnant and completely unaware which of the two is the father. Thus a complicated series of comedic and sometimes heartwarming events lead to the inevitable conclusion of who she will end up with.

This was a movie that was nowhere near on my radar. Not even close to be honest. Yet from the very beginning it was quite difficult not to feel somewhat taken in by Zellweger’s bright and complicated modern woman. After all these years she still manages to give this character a great deal of warmth and sincerity. For all the times she makes questionable choices, the actress proves to be just as vibrant as the first time she took to writing in her diary. When we first see her in the beginning of the film, she is bouncing around to House of Pain’s “Jump Around” and it becomes clear that she is still just as delightful as she was when she first played the role in 2001.

While she is the lead, she is also surrounded by some really talented actors. Colin Firth is very good as her old flame. And the new addition of Dempsey adds to the comedic triangle nicely. Gemma Jones and Jim Broadbent are wonderful together as Bridget’s parents. However, the real stand out aside from Zellweger herself is Emma Thompson as Dr. Rawlings, a doctor who understands, and perhaps sympathizes with, the strange situation Ms. Jones is currently involved in. Aside from the hipster gang that shows up to make Bridget’s workplace hellish - that is one of the least entertaining subplots - I enjoyed all the performances. Of course, none of it would have worked without Zellweger herself. She was clearly ready to return to this character, and it certainly shows.

BRIDGET JONES’S BABY is a sweet film. Once again directed by Sharon Maguire - she helmed the first film as well - this sequel does suffer from the usual symptoms of predictable romantic comedies. There is never any real surprise as to where the story is going. The laughs are consistent but they do occasionally feel like they are trying too hard. In fact, sometimes the more thoughtful moments overpowered a few failed attempts at humor. However, there is a lot that works. In fact, audiences who didn’t fall in love with the second film may find much more to show their affection for this time around. As stereotypical as some of it may be, it’s still an enjoyable experience to see a modern adult romance.

There is nothing particularly new here, but perhaps that isn’t a bad thing. With a script written by Helen Fielding, Dan Mazer and Emma Thompson - yes, she also had a hand in that - this is much better than expected. Clearly Zellweger hasn’t lost her appeal, and she manages to make you care once again about Bridget Jones. The soundtrack may be a bit heavy-handed with selections ranging from Rihanna’s “Stay” to Ed Sheeran’s hit “Thinking Out Loud” - the singer also has a very clever cameo - but it worked. BRIDGET JONES’S BABY is an amiable romantic triangle that satisfies with humor and heart. It may not be for everybody, but if you enjoyed the first film you will probably have no problem being swept away by this.